A parent’s remarriage is not only extremely tough on minor kids, but it’s a touchy subject for adult children as well. Be it death or divorce, you may feel like you’re still grieving the loss of your mom or dad while your other parent has simply moved on.

However, adult kids have to put themselves in their parent’s shoes. Your parent may have had a very long, good marriage (except for the ending), and now they no longer have a companion or best friend. They may feel lonely and long for that connection again, and they often find it with another spouse.

So, how can an adult child better adjust to their parent’s remarriage? Here are some tips:

1. Don’t be negative. Though your parent doesn’t need to ask your permission to get remarried, they would probably like your support. Being negative won’t stop the marriage, and it will only create bad feelings between you and your parent.

2. Don’t compare. Don’t measure the new spouse (“the stepparent”) against your own mom or dad. It’s not about you – it’s about your parent being happy.

3. Accept the situation. “Acceptance” is a word I use a lot with callers on my program. It’s a very important part of moving on because it means you’re no longer fighting something. When your parent gets married again, hopefully they are going to be happy and find joy. That may be hard for you to accept or like, but you need to do it if there is going to be peace. The first thing you can do is get on board. Accept the new “stepparent” and do everything you can to make them feel welcome in the family. Break your back trying to do that instead of treating them like an outsider.

4. Show respect. You may have to dig down deep sometimes to find something good about your parent’s new spouse, but you need to show respect because you’re sharing your parent with them. Your parent may marry someone who isn’t very nice. If that happens, you’re screwed, but you can be less screwed if you do your best to kiss up to them as best you can. Fake it. Make believe. When you go home, you can brush your teeth, but while you’re there, you’ve got to act sweet no matter what. Otherwise, you’re not going to see your mom or dad.

5. Don’t expect love or affection either way – ever. Maybe love and affection will develop. If it does, terrific, but if it never does, it’s not the end of the world. Not everybody is an emotional match.

6. If the new spouse has children or grandchildren, understand that “the female runs the roost.” If your dad marries a woman with kids, her kids are going to have priority unless your dad is very strong. And even if he is strong, he may abdicate his strength for the sake of not wanting to be alone.

The bottom line is that people tend to be more emotional about things the closer they are to them. For example, if there’s a disaster somewhere in the world, the first thing you want to know is if there were any Americans involved and if any of those hurt were from your state, city, or neighborhood. The closer they are to you, the more emotional you feel. A similar dynamic is at play in stepfamilies. You don’t feel the same way about your father’s new wife as you do about your own mom. However, a word to the (hopefully) wise: make it seem as though you do. Human beings have developed ways of appearing to be open and friendly (bowing, shaking hands, smiling, offering bread, etc.), and I suggest you use them all. Feelings usually develop in a better way over time if you put forth these efforts.

*A quick note to parents who are remarrying with adult kids:

Don’t put your spouse’s kids in your will. Only your own kids should be in your will, and by the same token, you shouldn’t expect your spouse to put your kids in theirs. In addition, I suggest signing a prenup and making sure that all insurance policies are clear about who is a beneficiary.

This is why I recommend six months of premarital counseling to ALL couples considering marriage so that issues like finances (and whose family you’ll be seeing during the holidays!) can all be sorted out objectively. I even believe that at some point during the process of creating a stepfamily with adult kids, everyone in the families should come in for counseling and discuss the potential problems, difficulties, and jealousies which could arise.

In general, people say you shouldn’t pass judgment on others. Well actually, when it comes to dating, you should. When you date, you’re supposed to discern what is good, bad, right, wrong, healthy, and unhealthy about a person. You need to know when to pull the plug because if you don’t, you’re going to experience misery, anguish, and frustration, and waste a hell of a lot of time.

Although I could discuss the topic both ways, I’m going to focus on the ladies. Here are 10 reasons to ditch a guy:

Reason #1: He’s base when talking about women
You know the music where the singer calls women “hos”? That sort of thing. If he leers, acts snotty, calls women “bitches,” or worse, it’s not a good plan to be dating him because his disrespect for women in general also includes you.

Reason #2: He’s a momma’s boy
Relationships are filled with enough decisions to be worked out between the two of you – it doesn’t need to be the three of you. If his mom handpicks everything from his career path to his apartment, take caution. I assure you my son’s apartment was definitely not selected or decorated by his mother (even if his taste is, as I like to say, “Eclectic”).

Reason #3: He’s primarily interested in himself
If everything is about his opinions, his concerns, and his dreams, or he likes to hear himself talk, then he’s not really interested in you to any great depth. You’re just a window dressing on his life.

Reason #4: He has addiction issues
If he has had any trouble with drugs, gambling, or alcohol, don’t even bother. That often requires a whole lifetime of management and counseling. Instead of marrying into it, go to school and get a license to be a clinical social worker – that way at least you’ll get paid to do it.

Reason #5: He’s not honest and/or trustworthy
Now, I’m not talking about him saying, “Of course I enjoy your cooking,” and then going out to get a taco when he says he’s putting gas in the car. That’s what we call telling a “white lie” in order to avoid hurting your feelings. I’m talking about major things: He says he has never been convicted of a felony and you find out he’s got a rap sheet, or he swears he doesn’t have an STD and then you end up with a little surprise. Big lies like, “I’ve never been married before,” or, “No, I don’t have kids,” set the foundation for a lack of trust, and if you can’t trust your man, you’re in store for a lifetime of anxiety, frustration, and big-time drama.

Reason #6: He’s negative
You know the type: He doesn’t like his job, thinks everyone on the road is an idiot, and pouts about nothing ever going his way. Everybody has bouts of negativity (I know I do), but dealing with a constantly negative person is draining. It will eventually drag you – and the relationship – down. If you’ve got a guy who is negative all the time, dump him.

Reason #7: He’s got Peter Pan Syndrome
Guys like this seem charming because they act like kids or perpetual teenagers. However, unless a guy can take emotional and fiscal responsibility, you don’t have yourself a real man.

Reason #8: He lacks ambition
This funnels from reason #7. He needs to have a goal – any type of goal. Life is a challenge, and if you don’t want somebody who isn’t going to protect and provide for you, don’t stay with someone who has no passion or ambition. A guy who gets fired and then sits back and doesn’t look for a job isn’t the kind of man you want. If he’s got a “why bother” attitude about life, you should have a “why bother” attitude about him.

Reason #9: He’s a cheater
Life is short. The last thing you want to do is spend your time worrying about who your guy is in bed with. I think there should be a one-strike law: If you’ve made a promise to each other that you’re not going to date other people anymore and he strays, dump him. Don’t accept any excuses.

Reason #10: He isn’t good boyfriend material
Though somebody may look good on paper, if they don’t mesh very well with your lifestyle, family, or friends, you don’t want to have a future with them. Otherwise, it’s going to be a lifetime of dealing with them not bothering or caring, and making a mess when they can’t fit in.

You and your ex-boyfriend are flirting with the idea of getting back together. However, there’s just one problem: before you broke up, you cheated on him and he still doesn’t know. Should you tell him? Watch:

Why is being a good son-in-law such a big deal? Well, statistically speaking, we see a significant drop in the divorce rate when men get along with their wives’ parents, especially their fathers. But even more importantly, it affects kids. Grandparents are very important to a child’s sense of well-being because they can add depth and security to the loving relationships in his or her life. The better your relationship is with your in-laws, the easier it is for your child to grow close with them and have more positive role models.

For these reasons, I recommend that people think seriously about potential in-law problems before they consider marriage. If you’re walking into a situation where your future in-laws hate you, you may want to rethink whether or not this match is right for you.

Losing family connections is bad for everyone involved, as I learned all too well from my own parents. My mother was a war bride from Italy, and my father was a nice Jewish boy from Brooklyn. My dad’s mom did not like the fact that he had married outside the faith, even though the only thing Jewish about his family was that they were culturally Jewish and celebrated Passover and Yom Kippur. My mother also didn’t speak English very well, which made my mean grandmother all the more vicious. She used to call up my mom almost daily saying how she wished my mother and me were dead. It was a source of great strife in my family.

The less familial the connection is with your in-laws, the less happy, secure, and supported your marriage is going to be. Period. That’s why I advise couples to do at least six months of premarital counseling so they can cover these kinds of issues before they get married.

So, assuming your in-laws are reasonable people, here’s a list of things for all you men out there on establishing a good relationship with your wife’s parents:

Respect their daughter and take good care of her. I am not the mother of a daughter, but if I was, I’d be in the face of her future husband saying, “You’d better take care of my baby. Treat her with respect, love, and protection. The most important thing to me is that you don’t hurt her and that you make her happy.”

Be there when their daughter needs you. I’ve heard too many stories about men who were too busy doing one dumb thing or another and missed the birth of their child. If you’re not at the hospital with your wife when your baby is born, you’ll be missing out on a lot of great parent-child bonding.

Act and look like a respectable man. If you want to have a meaningful relationship with her parents, act like a real man. Don’t look or behave like an idiot.

Reach out to your father-in-law.The relationship between a father and a daughter is special. It will mean a lot to your wife and your mother-in-law if you can build a relationship with your father-in-law. Find things that you have in common with him and go from there. Invite him to a ball game, go with him to a local event, or simply take him to lunch. Just spend some “guy time” together. And if you aren’t married yet, be sure to ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage before you pop the question. This is a show of respect that he will appreciate.

Attend family gatherings and engage. Don’t be frivolous about not attending family gatherings. Unless it’s unavoidable, never let your wife and kids go to a holiday gathering at her parents’ house alone – you are missing a fantastic opportunity to build upon your relationship with your in-laws and the extended family through conversation and a shared experience.

Build good relationships with their other children. Try to connect with your wife’s siblings and their

Consult with your wife on how to handle sticky situations. If it seems like there’s a growing issue, consult with your wife. She knows her parents better than you do. If you think a situation is a little sensitive, ask her for advice on how to respond.

Above all, treat their daughter like a queen and not like one of Henry VIII’s wives you’re going to behead. Simply put: be nice. It doesn’t kill you to be nice, does it?

Generally speaking, the divorce rate is lower for people who have good relationships with their in-laws. However, the sad reality is that the majority of husbands and wives do not.

For the most part, it’s the daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law who take issue with one another. According to a study conducted by Terri Apter, a psychologist at Cambridge University, 60 percent of daughters-in-law report having a stressful relationship with their mother-in-law, but only 15 percent of sons-in-law do. The primary reason: mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law feel a need to compete.

Let’s break it down. A mother gives birth to her son and puts all her energy into raising and caring for him. Then, this other woman comes along and takes him away after only knowing him for maybe two or three years. This is what sets the stage for the competition between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law.

My first rule for all you daughters-in-law out there is to stop being so prickly and try to look at things from your mother-in-law’s point of view. I recently had a caller on my program who felt insulted because her live-in mother-in-law was constantly cleaning her house for her. From the mother-in-law’s perspective, she was simply trying to have a purpose – instead of sitting around watching TV all day, she wanted to do something. However, the caller interpreted her cleaning as a hint that she couldn’t take care of her own house. I advised the caller not to confront her mother-in-law, which would only make her upset. I told her instead to think about things from her mother-in-law’s perspective: How was she feeling? What did she need?

Another piece of advice: Don’t sweat the small stuff. People say and do things all the time that they may not intend to be hurtful. Be able to stand back and ask, “Does this person really want to hurt or harm me in some way, or are they just being a little assertive, overbearing, or excited?”

Next, always try to avoid the criticism or insult. Listening will win you more points than arguing.

In addition, remember that everyone likes to feel appreciated. Find ways to show your in-laws respect. Take your mother-in-law out to lunch for her birthday, or remember to send a card and/or flowers on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.

Finally, don’t always think of your in-laws as “the in-laws.” They can certainly be your friends and mentors. Try to get involved with something they enjoy, like gardening or golf. At the very least, sharing a common interest with them will give you something to talk about during family dinners and holidays.

Now, there is a caveat to all of this. Some people simply have mean and nasty parents. If that’s the case, you can expect that no matter how hard you try, they will create stress for you and your spouse. Don’t let them. Husbands and wives need to watch each other’s backs. Mark my words, if you side with your parents against your spouse, it’ll be “The End.” If her mother is being a pain, then she should talk to her. If his mother is being a pain, then he should talk to her. Don’t allow them to tear your marriage apart.

In today’s world, you meet someone, you text, you think they’re the greatest thing in the world, you have sex, and it’s over. You don’t even bother to get to know them – it’s just, “Hello. Do you have 15 minutes? Let’s hook up.” The romance of actually trying to build a relationship is not much in season. Of course, there are shack-ups, but those are really just fake relationships.

I want to talk about the difference between real love and the fake stuff. Fake love is the immediate chemistry. We all know what that is – the chemical rush of horniness that can last from three weeks to a year and a half and then “Poof!” it’s gone. It’s a little different for males than females because they are each biologically focused on different things. Males are focused on their sperm taking over the world one female at a time. Females, on the other hand, are biologically concerned with safety, security, and being provided for so their babies will be safe. Although the biological system in human beings can be somewhat overridden, chemistry for a male is still a) she’s a hot babe, and b) I’m going to look hot walking around with her. It’s initially superficial, and it lasts longer the younger the male is. For the female, a male’s attractiveness is semi-irrelevant (I mean, “piggy dirty” is not acceptable, but other than that, she doesn’t care). She just wants to see if he can take care of her.

Men are perfectly capable of engaging in sex without emotional bonds. That’s why prostitutes have always existed. Today, a lot of women are behaving like that, and it’s one of the many reasons why female depression is so high. “Just having fun” leaves a lot of women feeling used up and lonely. They engage in multiple meaningless situations of physicality, which don’t make anybody – men or women – feel better. It takes time to develop a relationship, and a lot of you folks aren’t doing that. You are just trying to get some physical and emotional needs met. The problem with that is there’s no giving involved – the cornerstone of a real relationship.

The onset of real love and fake love can feel very similar.It’s obsessive – you can’t think about anything else, and you might lose weight, sleep, or time. However, when it’s fake love, you are both only projecting fantasies and assuming things about each other. You can’t see future problems because you are both idealizing all of each other’s qualities and insisting that the other person is the best you’ve ever met. However, you haven’t actually “met” them. You are only seeing an idealized version of that person.

That is why courting is so important. It’s how you learn more about a person other than just, “She’s beautiful and a bombshell in bed.” You have to let the dust settle. Until that happens, you really have no idea if you’re right for each other.

When two people immediately start planning for the future within weeks of meeting, it’s a sign that they don’t know a damn thing about each other. I’ve always told women that if a guy is proposing that quickly, it isn’t because he loves them. Real love evolves into (and I know this word is going freak some people out) service. You see, fake love is all about how the other person makes you feel. Real love is about your commitment to making someone else feel good. Real love involves two people focusing on the needs of each other and doing loving acts over and over again without anyone keeping score. That’s why fake love ends up being such a bummer and a letdown – you hit a wall because all you’re thinking about is how you feel.

Now, just because fake love is largely about physicality doesn’t mean it’s unimportant to real love, especially in the case of men. I find it really annoying when women call my show saying they’ve gained between 30 and 50 lbs and still expect their husbands to love them exactly the same. Your husband may have deep feelings of caring and commitment toward you, but it doesn’t change the fact that your blubber is not a turn-on. If you would have asked him, “What would you think if I gained a lot of weight,” I guarantee you that his answer would have been, “I want you to be fit and nice-looking like you are now.” Women get all mad and upset when I tell them that because they think, “If he loved me, he wouldn’t say something so hurtful.” Come on! All he’s doing is telling you the damn truth. As a spouse, taking good care of yourself and being healthy are very important. Chemistry still matters later on, and a lot of it has to do with how you look to your spouse.

On another note, what happens when you don’t have chemistry with someone?

Well, some people hang around for a while to see if the chemistry will evolve. I’m not a big believer in that. I think there are probably some circumstances where that does happen, but beating your head against the wall to make it happen is probably not a good plan. When you hear about two long-time friends who start feeling sexy about each other one day, that is not really chemistry developing – it’s just chemistry they weren’t aware of that is now coming forth. In my opinion, the chemistry was probably there from day one, but their brains were not functioning on that level.

If you have persisted and still don’t feel chemistry, don’t try to force things. It isn’t fair to you or your potential partner to do that. You can’t manufacture or counterfeit passion, and there is no substitute for chemistry. Give each romantic experiment a good try, but don’t wait forever. If nothing happens, you have to move on.